221B Baker Street

Very rarely do I get writers block. Actually, it has only happened twice in my entire life. Usually, when I sit down to write the ideas come flowing from my brain, through my hands, and onto the paper (or in this case..my keyboard, laptop, or what have you).

But as I lay here, trying to write this blog, my mind is preoccupied with only one thought- bread, and it's not as random as you think.

I recall someone once telling me a "fun fact" (I am quite fond of random fun facts)- that grocery stores purposely put the bakery near the entrance so that when a customer walks in they immediately smell the delicious baked goods and are thrown into a shopping frenzy. She may have put it more eloquently. But neither here nor there.

Albeit deceptive, I remember thinking how ingenious this concept was. Get into the customers head, make it easy to guide them towards the things they like, and keep them coming.

The rise of the internet and technology has simplified the manner in which businesses are able to do this- to predict what we need, what we like, and what we want. They are able to cater to these needs by tracking our every move.

With methods such as split testing, conversion funnel analysis, and click tracking, companies are able to understand how we view their sites. Did we like it? Which page did we visit most often? What turned us off from the page- when did we exit out? With this information they are able to customize their pages, rearrange the layouts, the formats, all so that we stay there longer and (hopefully) by their product.

And it's not just what buy..oh no! It's what we watch, how we got there, the flow of traffic. What page did I click on that led me to this video? What exact words did I use in the Google search that sent me to their site? They want to know these things. So that they can position themselves more favorably. So that they can get inside our heads.

Tricky tricky, me likey!